Random Talk / Sierra Pic / Hollister

Sierra.... Fall of 2013.... 9 years old

I love this girl's smile and her bubbly nature.  She is always skipping through the house and is what some refer to as a free spirit.  I would say she is "uninhibited".  She does not see limits usually.  She is confident.  She thinks she can do everything.  She has been telling me how to drive since she was able to utter her first words.  When my oldest was in public school and we would go to pick her up Sierra would sit behind me in her car seat and every time a car would move forward she would say, "Go!  You are going to miss your child!"  I would turn around and say, "I don't need a two year old to tell me how to drive."  It was really cute.  Not as cute the 1,000th time she would say it, though.  ;)  She is the kind of kid that can put together an outfit that you would think was hideous until you saw it on her.  She just has that flair... sort of a trendsetter type.  I never was a trendsetter, so I watch in amazement sometimes when she walks out in some unusual outfit that somehow works... on her.  She likes to be funny... and she likes to aggravate her siblings... only she does not always realize she is doing it.  She just has a knack for getting in other people's business and bossing them around and telling them how to do things.  She refers to herself as "the little momma" and she tries to do my job.  Caden is "her baby".  In fact, Sahara kind of was, too, but the little momma got tired of the "scream machine" (Sahara)... she still mothers her, though.  She just likes to claim the one that screams less.  She has confidence... and uninhibited confidence.  I wish I had a little bit of that... ummmm... wait... I do in some areas.  She has  a servants heart, but already she gets tired of people taking advantage of her because of it.  She is sneaky and likes to trick people for a good laugh.

That shirt she is wearing... I just want to say that we don't shop at Hollister.  In fact, we don't even walk in that store or Ambercrombie because of the inappropriate over-sexualization.  The reason she has that shirt is that my husband had his English students write letters to various businesses of their choice asking for free merchandise and Hollister sent a box of shirts for his students.  My kids have two of them.  For several years they wore them as nightgowns.  Now, they wear them as shirts.  We still won't shop there, though.  

So, I felt like sharing a picture and being rather random.  

Updated Post: Swimwear and Modesty

I have updated the following post: 
http://littlethingstx.blogspot.com/2013/05/swimwear-and-modesty.html

Please take the time to go back and read it and follow the link to read the article written by The Pennington Post.  I wish I could merge her post and my post together because they go so well together.  This is such an important issue as we come into the swimsuit season.  We do not need to be a part of robbing our daughters and sons of their innocence.  They can have fun with their bodies clothed. 

Swimwear and Modesty

 
"Modesty: As Summer is fast approaching it will be swimsuit season. Modest swimwear takes a little more creativity, but you can find modest options. I don't want to teach my children to flaunt everything. God made them beautiful without putting it ALL on display. Protect their innocence! I will be happy to share any resources I know of for modest swimwear options. Everything you see in these pics is from Wal-Mart (Caden), Academy (Sierra's cool hot pink zebra print skirt set), Target (Sienna & Sahara). I can also tell you that what you might think is "odd" might not seem "odd" at all to your child. We had concerns, but my kids were very happy to have suits that don't show everything and make them feel like they are wearing their underwear in public."  --Me posting via Facebook

First of all, I want to say.... and I have probably said this a few times before.... that everyone has a different view of what defines modesty.  Also, I tell my girls and my son that I want to show them that there is a different way than the half naked swimsuits that are all around us.  I have damage to my heart and mind from my own immodest journey.  I would like to save them from that, but ultimately there will come a day when all the choices are theirs to make.  To me I also think is so important to provide them with something they can like and not just something you can make them wear.  If you dress them in something they do not like or are embarrassed to wear, you are going to have a harder time with this.

Secondly, you have to teach your children the "Why?" behind teaching them modesty.

• Why is this important to you?  You may have to talk about your past or why this is a conviction for you. 
• Why is this important in our society?  You may have to talk to them about the issues in our society.
• Why it should be important to them?  They will need to glorify God in their swimwear choices.
• And many more... the point here is to be willing to discuss this.

The last point I am going to make is that you might not find your "swimsuit" in the the swimwear department.  It might be in the sportswear or you might have to search out the pieces separately.  For Caden I found his in the swimwear department as a set that included the Rash Guard (that is the shirt top) and the swim trunks.  The ones my littler girls were wearing were in the sportswear section intended to be worn for running track or some other sport, but they are perfect because they have a built in fitted panty under the shorts.  Even if someone is able to see up their leg their is still a swimsuit like bottom under there.  Those pieces were sold individually so you could mix and match with other items they coordinated with.  The suit my older daughter, Sierra, in this pic is wearing was sold the same way and you could choose the skirt which has a biker short type bottom built into it or you could choose a bikini bottom.  I will say that my oldest daughter does not like the feel of this as much as others but she has one that is purple and black zebra that she has worn for two Summers now.  I also have a modest swimsuit that I bought last year.  I had to roam around a bit to find mine, but surprisingly I found all the pieces at Wal-Mart.  I was able to find a black, white, and hot pink Rash Guard with zebra print accents in the swim section.  I think there was a matching skirt, but they were sold out of the size or it was super short (I don't really remember).  I tried several things.  I bought a black lycra tennis skirt from the sportswear department and that is what I ended up using.  I also tried black lycra capri length legging and I liked that look but they were sliding around too much which was because I bought the wrong size.  To go with the leggings I had purchased a short zebra skirt that worked with it.  All of those pieces were in the sportswear sections.  Be open to searching out pieces and think out of the box.  

UPDATE:  I left out soooo much without thinking about it.  I was reminded of some things when I read this article from The Pennington Point.  http://thepenningtonpoint.com/2013/05/embracing-modesty-no-19-swimsuit-edition/  

There were a lot of points that are in my "head", but I did not type.  Like, when I was pregnant I bought a maternity dress at Motherhood that was all lycra and knee length and I wore a swimsuit panty under it.  I had really bought it with water birthing in mind, but it became my swimsuit, as well, for the next two years.  Lycra dresses are a great swimsuit option paired with biker shorts or leggings.  Many of these things are getting much easier to find since people wear them for exercise clothes or sportswear.  Even Wal-Mart has a whole section devoted to this sort of thing.  Sadly, most people wear it for everyday clothes, though.  LOL!  I think I am going to go back to my swimsuit modesty post and link your article!  If this is not okay with you please let me know.

Simple Sewing for Modesty: Part 2

You can read about Part 1 of this series and an explanation here.

I will try to keep these posts short, but do more of them.  The type of modification I will be discussing in this post is simple and frugal.  I think Savannah's outfit cost under $5.  The skirt was worth spending a few bucks on, but I usually do pick up skirts to modify for under a dollar.  I think this one cost me $3.99, though.  It has been well worth it. 

My biggest light bulb moment came when I realized that I could find long skirts in ladies sizes much easier than you can in the children's department.  The problem, of course, is that the waist is too big since Savannah is thin.  And sometimes they are too long.  This time it was not, so I will focus on this outfit this time and discuss the "too long skirt" in a future posting.  Back to this one.  Being that the skirt is corduroy it was made with a fitted waste and a zipper in the back.  We both liked the fitted look, so there were a couple of options here.  One was that I could turn in wrong side out and take up the side seams.  That would work, but it was not what we decided on.  Instead I had her try the skirt on right side out like normal.  I then used my fingers to pleat the waste and pin it in place in two spots along the front.  After surveying the results in the mirror I asked Savannah what she thought and she liked it, so I simply hand stitched the pleats in using a hidden sewing technique.  I could have just place it on the maching and topstitched it and that would have done well.  It is a matter of preference really. 

The shirt looks innocent enough..... that is... NOW.  I loved the color and print of this shirt and the fabric is an easy care stretchy polyester and lycra blend, but the neckline before was split to below the breasts.  Yes, wide open!  This was a ladies extra small shirt and it was clearly made to show all the cleavage a person was willing to show.  I knew I could.... and WOULD fix that!  Ha!  I did decide to leave a small split at the top, but not enough to show a thing!  I once again used the same method of sewing with a hidden stitch that I used on the skirt pleats by handstitching.  I encourage you to look close at an outfit to see if it is something you could like if you were to modify it. 

Just this past Sunday morning when I was getting ready for church I had to take my own shirt up two inches in the back of the neck to keep it from showing my bra straps.  I will do a post on that during this series.  We are living in an age where you need to learn some simple sewing techniques or your options for clothing will be slim to none. 

{NOTE:  There will be about six postings... or more in this series, but there will be other posts.  If you see other posts that does not mean the post series is over.  I will state in the last post that it is the final post in the series.}

Simple Sewing for Modesty: Part 1

Modesty... such a strange word in our culture today.  Gone are the days when most people even care.  The less you are wearing the better seems to be the thinking of today.  Why is modesty so close to my heart?  Because it is an area that I have had to "deal with" in my life.  I was raised to be pure in some ways, but it was very contradictory.  As my parents were preaching at me to stay "pure" they were also encouraging impure behaviours.

Let me stop right here and define "pure" for the purposes of the above paragraph.  What that meant to my parents was not to take part in the "s" word.  Cuddling with your boyfriend on the couch... allowed.  Kissing your boyfriend.... allowed.  Having a boyfriend.... allowed.  Looking a bit promiscuous for the boys... allowed.  Dressing in a way that showed off the body... allowed.  In fact, I can remember many times being told I should "flaunt it while you've got it", insinuating that that thin body would not be something I would have forever so I should put it on display.  While that may be a true statement in that that scrawny little body I used to have would one day be a thing of the past I can assure you it was of NO benefit to my well being to put it on display for all to see.  I don't want my girl to live with the damage that immodesty causes.  For this reason I have increased my sewing, although I am mostly making adjustments to items that I purchase retail or resale. 

Reality check... my preteen is probably note going to want to wear just things I sew for her forever.  Also, she needs some fashion freedom to display her own personality.  My oldest little girl will be a teenager in less than a year.  I am holding on to her innocence and preserving it as long as I can, but at the same time I know I have to find a balance.  When she goes to church and is around her friends there (who mostly attend public school) I don't want her to feel like an outcast.  This is not such an issue with her homeschool friends.  And I want to say here that this is not a moment that I am casting judgement on public schoolers.  This is just a fact.  Those kids are living a life that is about competing to fit in.  In that world you do not want to be the outcast. 

One thing that I have found that can make the wardrobe options go a little further is to buy a few "muscle shirts" (AKA tank tops).  Every year you can pick up a few of these for $1 a piece on clearance. 

They also sell them in a 3-pack online.  The ones I get on clearance sometimes have a graphic on them or they are solid.  I am not picky about it because they are going to be covered anyway.  I just make sure they do not have anything on them that goes against our standards.  Event though I purchase these for modesty, guess what?  They are not modest as they come.  I take up FOUR WHOLE INCHES in the shoulders.  If I did not they would plunge way too low in the front and in the armpits.  Notice the ones that are made like the picture above have a high back.  If they are made that way you have to make the modification in to the front portion of the straps.  If you are uncertain of how to do this you can experiment of just make sure you purchase shirts with a scoop back. 

These can used to make a trendy shirt modest.  An example is the butterfly style shirt my daughter recently got for Christmas.  It was perfectly her!  It was zebra print.... her favorite animal.  It was purple... her favorite color.  It was sequined... because most girls like some sparkle.  And it was a butterfly style shirt... that she loves, but that can sometimes be hard to find in modest styles (many are see-through or very gappy under the arms). 

Three of my girls loving on the neighbor's PUPPY.

(Yep, that is likely to get more attention than my blog topic... HUGE puppy!)

The main point of the tank underneath is that when the girls lift their arms or bend over the tank underneath protects them from others seeing their bodies.  Another alternative is to wear a long sleeve tee or turtleneck underneath.  Savannah has worn this shirt several ways and all work well. 

I will continue this series with different topics.  I want to keep it kind of short, so I don't burn anyone out in one huge post.